Game notes for the San Jose St. game:
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PSU vs San Jose St.
- Thread starter forestgreen
- Start date
GustaViking
Active member
Merry Christmas to all on here. Enjoy your holidays, and your families.
It'll be nice to be at home for a while. Hopefully we can continue playing well at the Stott.
weberwildcat3
Active member
PSU should be able to spank the sparts. NAU beat them by 5 in San Jose recently
WiViking
Active member
http://www.bigskyfans.com/2007/12/27/psu-vs-sjsu-preview
At 4-5, one would expect the San Jose State Spartans to be at the back of the pack in the WAC conference. However, this appears to be a down year for the conference as they are right in the middle so far. On the down side, none of those wins come against a team that is better than mediocre. This is another chance to make a statement against a team with a winning record. On December 15, they lost to Northern Arizona at home. They are a very young team. The two leading scorers are a sophomore and freshman respectively.
Well, what can you say about the Vikings? They weren’t able to win in the state of Washington, and that they cannot shoot free throws consistently well. It has been their downfall in two exciting games, the championship game of the TOWC against Colorado State and the EWU game Saturday. The good sign is that the level of competition will be fairly consistent the rest of the season. To this point, there has been a tough game, then an easy one. Perhaps consistency will help the team come together. The one glaring hole on this team is Scott Morrison. He disappeared recently, either due to bad play, or an injury, but the void has not been filled. The one thing that is obvious to fans is that the entire team suffers when he isn’t on the court.
Match-Ups
Center
SJSU: C.J. Webster PSU: Scott Morrison/Julius Thomas
At 6′8″ 255, Webster is similar to the size the Vikings will see all year in the Big Sky. The choice is whether or not to use Morrison. If they are going to remove him from the lineup, they might as well do it now, because it hasn’t helped the team to see him start, play 15 minutes, then sit the rest of the game. If they choose to keep him in there, he needs to play at least 25 minutes, and he needs to get a lot more touches. His presence makes the outside players much more dangerous, and his rebounding ability in the middle gives everyone more opportunities. Webster is averaging 9.3 points and 7 rebounds per game. This may be the game to move Thomas to power forward because of the center’s size. Kyle Coston has been very inconsistent this season, and it would allow Tiefenthaler to play a position where he would fit in better. JR Moore will be able to deal with the wide-body inside, and perhaps give Bone a reason to play Morrison more. If Morrison plays 25 minutes, the Vikings have an advantage, if not, the Spartans will take advantage.
Advantage: Push
Power Forward
SJSU: Chris Oakes PSU: Tyrell Mara
Since becoming eligible two games ago, Oakes has been the best player for the Spartans. He is the prototypical power forward with the ability to score and rebound well inside, but lacking an outside shot. He has the size to overpower Mara inside, which means that the Vikings have to exploit him defensively by playing Mara outside. If not, the best option is probably to play Tiefenthaler to try to match his size. Oakes is the key guy for the Spartans, and power forwards have tended to produce high numbers against the Vikings, so I’ll give the advantage to him.
Advantage: Spartans
Small Forward
SJSU: Tim Pierce PSU: Deonte Huff
Pierce is a guy who has the ability to explode offensively if his shot is dropping. He and should be a good match-up because they both have the instinct to be the guy for their teams. I think Huff will outproduce Pierce in this game because the Vikings have really relied on him in recent games. Pierce has less pressure to score due to the return of Oakes. After his first double-double of the year, Huff will try to stay hot, but the Vikings also need him to return to his status as the best free throw shooter. In the last 4 games, he is only 5-12 after a 5 game stretch where he was 23-25. The Vikings rely on the senior due to the recession of fellow seniors Lucas and Morrison.
Advantage: Vikings
Shooting Guard
SJSU: Justin Graham PSU: Dupree Lucas
The freshman Graham has had a great season for the Spartans picking up some of the scoring slack when Oakes was out. After a couple of steady games, Lucas got back to his early season form with bad shooting. After a great junior year, coach Ken Bone was expecting a lot more from Lucas. This is his opportunity to get it back on track. Perhaps he can exploit the freshman, and create better shots than he normally gets. If he can do that, he may be able to get back his confidence going into the bulk of the conference season. If he has trouble again, it may be the last straw. Murray has played much better than Lucas recently, and may be the better option going forward if Lucas continues shooting badly. Lucas is the better defender, so he will get the start. Perhaps the duo can hold Graham under 10 points. He and his backup, DaShawn Wright are averaging about 20 points per game, and should have the advantage in this match-up.
Advantage: Spartans
Point Guard
SJSU: Jamon Hill PSU: Jeremiah Dominguez
Hill is the only senior on the Spartans who really sees extended time. They will need him to provide leadership on a team that sorely needs it, especially if they are in this game late. Shockingly, even though he is under 6 feet tall, he is averaging over 3 rebounds per game. Dominguez had a tough second half against the Eagles after a perfect first half. The Vikings will need his points, as well as those of Polis to keep up with the pace of the Spartans. Both point guards have shot the ball well at the Stott Center this year, and that is likely to continue. The advantage definitely goes to the miniature duo of the Vikings, whose production has been a blessing in a down year for many.
Advantage: Vikings
Bench
The bench has disappeared recently for the Vikings aside from Murray and Polis. Guys like Hammond and Tiefenthaler will be relied upon to provide scoring and energy in a game that will likely have poor attendance. The two key guys for the Spartans are DaShawn Wright and Devonte Thomas, both of whom are wings. The Viking defenders have done a good job against bench scorers so far this season.
Advantage: Push
The Vikings haven’t played well recently, and this isn’t really a team to try to fix things against. Though they don’t have a great record, they are solid all the way around, and have the ability to score quickly. The Vikings play well at home, but this may not be much of an advantage without most of the students. If the Vikings can make their free throws, and get some inside production, they should win a close game.
Prediction: PSU 79-76
At 4-5, one would expect the San Jose State Spartans to be at the back of the pack in the WAC conference. However, this appears to be a down year for the conference as they are right in the middle so far. On the down side, none of those wins come against a team that is better than mediocre. This is another chance to make a statement against a team with a winning record. On December 15, they lost to Northern Arizona at home. They are a very young team. The two leading scorers are a sophomore and freshman respectively.
Well, what can you say about the Vikings? They weren’t able to win in the state of Washington, and that they cannot shoot free throws consistently well. It has been their downfall in two exciting games, the championship game of the TOWC against Colorado State and the EWU game Saturday. The good sign is that the level of competition will be fairly consistent the rest of the season. To this point, there has been a tough game, then an easy one. Perhaps consistency will help the team come together. The one glaring hole on this team is Scott Morrison. He disappeared recently, either due to bad play, or an injury, but the void has not been filled. The one thing that is obvious to fans is that the entire team suffers when he isn’t on the court.
Match-Ups
Center
SJSU: C.J. Webster PSU: Scott Morrison/Julius Thomas
At 6′8″ 255, Webster is similar to the size the Vikings will see all year in the Big Sky. The choice is whether or not to use Morrison. If they are going to remove him from the lineup, they might as well do it now, because it hasn’t helped the team to see him start, play 15 minutes, then sit the rest of the game. If they choose to keep him in there, he needs to play at least 25 minutes, and he needs to get a lot more touches. His presence makes the outside players much more dangerous, and his rebounding ability in the middle gives everyone more opportunities. Webster is averaging 9.3 points and 7 rebounds per game. This may be the game to move Thomas to power forward because of the center’s size. Kyle Coston has been very inconsistent this season, and it would allow Tiefenthaler to play a position where he would fit in better. JR Moore will be able to deal with the wide-body inside, and perhaps give Bone a reason to play Morrison more. If Morrison plays 25 minutes, the Vikings have an advantage, if not, the Spartans will take advantage.
Advantage: Push
Power Forward
SJSU: Chris Oakes PSU: Tyrell Mara
Since becoming eligible two games ago, Oakes has been the best player for the Spartans. He is the prototypical power forward with the ability to score and rebound well inside, but lacking an outside shot. He has the size to overpower Mara inside, which means that the Vikings have to exploit him defensively by playing Mara outside. If not, the best option is probably to play Tiefenthaler to try to match his size. Oakes is the key guy for the Spartans, and power forwards have tended to produce high numbers against the Vikings, so I’ll give the advantage to him.
Advantage: Spartans
Small Forward
SJSU: Tim Pierce PSU: Deonte Huff
Pierce is a guy who has the ability to explode offensively if his shot is dropping. He and should be a good match-up because they both have the instinct to be the guy for their teams. I think Huff will outproduce Pierce in this game because the Vikings have really relied on him in recent games. Pierce has less pressure to score due to the return of Oakes. After his first double-double of the year, Huff will try to stay hot, but the Vikings also need him to return to his status as the best free throw shooter. In the last 4 games, he is only 5-12 after a 5 game stretch where he was 23-25. The Vikings rely on the senior due to the recession of fellow seniors Lucas and Morrison.
Advantage: Vikings
Shooting Guard
SJSU: Justin Graham PSU: Dupree Lucas
The freshman Graham has had a great season for the Spartans picking up some of the scoring slack when Oakes was out. After a couple of steady games, Lucas got back to his early season form with bad shooting. After a great junior year, coach Ken Bone was expecting a lot more from Lucas. This is his opportunity to get it back on track. Perhaps he can exploit the freshman, and create better shots than he normally gets. If he can do that, he may be able to get back his confidence going into the bulk of the conference season. If he has trouble again, it may be the last straw. Murray has played much better than Lucas recently, and may be the better option going forward if Lucas continues shooting badly. Lucas is the better defender, so he will get the start. Perhaps the duo can hold Graham under 10 points. He and his backup, DaShawn Wright are averaging about 20 points per game, and should have the advantage in this match-up.
Advantage: Spartans
Point Guard
SJSU: Jamon Hill PSU: Jeremiah Dominguez
Hill is the only senior on the Spartans who really sees extended time. They will need him to provide leadership on a team that sorely needs it, especially if they are in this game late. Shockingly, even though he is under 6 feet tall, he is averaging over 3 rebounds per game. Dominguez had a tough second half against the Eagles after a perfect first half. The Vikings will need his points, as well as those of Polis to keep up with the pace of the Spartans. Both point guards have shot the ball well at the Stott Center this year, and that is likely to continue. The advantage definitely goes to the miniature duo of the Vikings, whose production has been a blessing in a down year for many.
Advantage: Vikings
Bench
The bench has disappeared recently for the Vikings aside from Murray and Polis. Guys like Hammond and Tiefenthaler will be relied upon to provide scoring and energy in a game that will likely have poor attendance. The two key guys for the Spartans are DaShawn Wright and Devonte Thomas, both of whom are wings. The Viking defenders have done a good job against bench scorers so far this season.
Advantage: Push
The Vikings haven’t played well recently, and this isn’t really a team to try to fix things against. Though they don’t have a great record, they are solid all the way around, and have the ability to score quickly. The Vikings play well at home, but this may not be much of an advantage without most of the students. If the Vikings can make their free throws, and get some inside production, they should win a close game.
Prediction: PSU 79-76
GustaViking
Active member
Ya. By the way, the "new" BigSky TV (from B.I. WebTV) really sucks. The advertised PSU home game is not on (again) tonight. I've paid for the "season's pass," and so far have been jobbed out of 4 (four) home games.
I guess the L & C game at the Rose Garden was not their fault, but the other 3 missed broadcasts certainly are. I recommend no-one else waste their money, as I have.
I guess the L & C game at the Rose Garden was not their fault, but the other 3 missed broadcasts certainly are. I recommend no-one else waste their money, as I have.
GustaViking
Active member
Oh...oh...free throws for SJSU.
GustaViking
Active member
Overtime.
GustaViking
Active member
J.D. on fire.
GustaViking
Active member
Hopefully he can get some help from some of the other players. We need a little more balanced scoring.
GustaViking
Active member
4 missed FT's in a row in overtime. Ouch & ouch.
Nice blocking call at the end of regulation ref. Horrible.
Decent free throw shooting wouldn't even have put us in that position.
Decent free throw shooting wouldn't even have put us in that position.
Bad coaching (don't get me started on Bone's technical it was one of the few correct calls in this game), bad officiating, bad free throw shooting, bad loss, period. On a positive note San Jose St. looked long and athletic and their freshman point guard has a lot of potential and was one of main reasons the Spartans won this game. Unfortunately, I'm not a Spartan fan, but a Viking fan. Dominguez, Huff and Murray are the only ones playing with any confidence. I hope we can bounce back against Sac St. Pissed off in Beaverton.
GustaViking
Active member
I'm sorry you guys had to walk out of the gym after that game. I'm sure it hurt more than listening to it on the radio. Which I had to due to "BigSkyTV" screwing up again. Which made my night even more disappointing !! More bad coaching by Bone ??Last edited by on 2007-12-29, 00:47; edited 1 time in total
To me, Morrison should be ave. at least 16 points and 10 rebounds. He doesn't have many effective post moves and has very little confidence offensively. I partially blame Bone's coaching on this. My god, the kid is a senior now and has the talent, it should be his team. But at the end of game it's give Dominguez the ball and see what he can up with, which is amazing what he does at 5-6, but that's not great coaching in my opinion. As far as the technical foul on Bone it couldn't have come at a worse time. I know Bone was frustrated with the bad officiating, but don't get a "t" and give San Jose St. all the momentum. We are going through a very rough stretch, I hope the Viks can turn this around.
Not sure why, but the Bone technical foul didn't really upset me too much. Yeah, it was a bad time for it, but at least the robot-like Bone showed some emotion.
Is Lucas hurt?
Is Lucas hurt?